Session 76 Report: Deck Retrieval Part 1.
General Summary
Session 76 – Wednesday April 3, 2024 – Deck Retrieval – The Heist Begins.
4-hour social/combat session 5:30 PM to 10:30 PM.
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Looking at the parchment, Gazlowe recognized the name Hawtorne Blackwood. He a was known to be a champion of the Arnold cypher, also known as a book cypher. This cypher allowed two people to send an encrypted message to each other with a specific book used as the key, along with a sequence of numbers.
The Stone Bearers. Party of 4:
It is the 13th day of the month of Hammer (Deepwinter) in the 51st year of the Age of Enialis (Mid Jan.)- Abrash – Wood (Desert) Elf, L12 Druid – Jacob Munson (Remote and sleepy)
- Ajani– High Elf, L12 Wizard – Nathan Gioconda
- Gazlowe – Goblin, L12 Artificer – Josh Pozsonyi
- Cassidy – Human, L12 Blood hunter – Ryan Armstrong (Remote)
- Isabella – Forest Gnome, L12 Barbarian – Jackie Armstrong
- Juan Peyote – Gnome L12 Paladin – Will Johnson (Absent)
The package.
George took the party aside to a private area so he could speak to the Stone Bearers alone. He told them that he was a Harper agent working for the Lord’s alliance and has spent quite some time investigating and tracking down the Deck of Many things that was stolen from a powerful but eccentric wizard in Waterdeep named Orillius Ponnell. He told them that Orillius had borrowed the Deck from safekeeping of the Black Staff (Enialis) and Orillius has modified the deck, making it larger and what he calls, “Balanced.” He told the party that the deck, can be used to grant wishes, change the history of your past, increase your abilities, and bestow great wealth among many other things. It can also just as easily take away all your wealth, make you weaker, put new powerful enemies in your life or even imprison your soul. “As you can imagine, the deck in the wrong hands could potentially spell disaster.”The suspects.
George told the party that he is convinced a group of suspected thieves and mercenaries who “Work” at the Black Hand Pawn shop are responsible for the theft. Unfortunately, what he has learned about these people means that it won’t be a simple task to retrieve it. They are suspected in several crimes, but he has yet been able to “prove” anything. He strongly believes they consist of many assassins and skilled veteran sword fighters along with several very strong brutes. George continued to explain that the group is led by a very powerful Archmage. a former Royal wizard of Waterdeep named Ryan Phillip. Ryan is very experienced and charismatic. Although he can’t prove it George believes that Ryan is not only the manager of the Pawn shop, but also the ringleader running a criminal organization from the shop.The challenge.
George was certain the group could easily handle any one of 2 of these people with no issue, but a frontal assault by any group, even one as powerful as The Stone Bearers, would prove fatal. George told the group that they will need to engage in discretion, observation, and subterfuge, perhaps even somehow infiltrate the group to find where the deck is and then skillfully extract it. The Lord’s Alliance and the Council of the Wood agreed that they could have no part in this operation directly and if the party is caught, they would deny any assistance. The Red lady requested that the cloaks she gave them be left with her so that if they are caught there would be nothing to tie her to this.The offer.
George told the party the Lord’s Alliance is willing to pay 500pp for the return of the Deck of Many things and its secure delivery to the Blackstaff tower in Waterdeep. He also told them that if they should happen to “reappropriate” any stolen goods, they would not be prosecuted. In addition, he would give them an emerald and gold necklace worth 250gp that they might find helpful once inside. He told them the pawn shop is open to the public so they can freely go in and pawn, sell or buy items. The party agreed to the offer and George gave them the emerald and necklace. He also told them the location of the pawnshop in a small village on the outskirts of Zelbross. The party gave their red cloaks back to the Red Lady and Orist was able to use travel via plants to get them within a few hours walk of the village.The village.
The party arrived at the edge of the forest and walked about ½ a day to make it to the village where the Pawn shop was located. Along the way they discussed various ideas and realized they need to get some sort of disguises and find a way to scope out the shop. They found the shop in the village about an hour before it closed. The village did have an inn, a pub, a small market, and a bakery. They also saw “Bertha’s bed and breakfast” across the street from the pawn shop and to the west of the store.A place to stay.
They knocked on the door and were greeted by an elderly woman who gave all the indications that she might be a hag. Bertha asked if the party was interested in a room for the night. Cassidy said they were looking for lodging for a week. Bertha asked, “How many?” Knowing that a very fancy room would be 4gp/night, Cassidy handed her a bag with 400gp and said, “1 week, no questions.” Bertha took the bag, smiled, handed them a key, and walked away from her home saying, “One week.” Gazlowe took down the sign and they all went inside. They examined the house and found various creepy clues confirming the owner was a hag. They found a couple chests of clothing that ranged from elf clothes to gnome clothes with everything in between. They found secret passageways between the rooms with knives hanging there for ease of access. Isabella went out and found a tavern that sold Chicken wings and came back with a very large bucket o’ hot wings.The Stake out.
Gazlowe spent the evening turning all the clothes he found into excellent disguises. Abrash turned into a common house sparrow and flew around the house noting all windows and doors. He reported back to the group the general configuration of the 2-story building. The building had a front door that was clearly the main public entrance. He counted 2 big windows in the front looking into fancy private rooms, 2 windows on the side looking into a large show room, and a couple windows in the back northeast corner looking into a small break room. In the back was a gated courtyard. The gate read, “Employees only.” Inside the back courtyard were 2 exterior doors and a slanted door leading to an underground area. The upstairs seemed to be living quarters with several rooms but most of the curtains were drawn so little could be seen. Abrash noted that there were about 6 sales associates on the sales floor constantly and people would come down from upstairs to change places at irregular intervals. He also noted that of the few purchases he witnessed, none of the sellers seemed very happy with the deals. During the evening Cassidy made 2 potions of stealth. Ajani tried to scry on Ryan Philip but was not able to make any contact. After dark, Ajani took the first watch and noted there were several people coming in and out of the Pawn shop after hours. Several people who came back looked very suspicious, wearing all black cloaks, and carried small sacks with them. During the 2nd watch, Ajani and Isabella saw similar shady people entering the Pawn Shop. The creepy people going into the shop looked directly at Isabella and Abrash, but they quickly hid.Going in.
The party had a good night’s rest. In the morning, they discussed their next plan. They talked about mugging one of the assassins at night, or perhaps pickpocketing them. Cassidy suggested just getting a job with them and Gazlowe quickly shot it down. They agreed to take in the gemstone and then necklace and try selling them. After that, they could also sell the sword with the tentacles. Gazlowe’s disguises were extremely well made. Ajani was given the alias of Frank Catton; Cassidy was Virgil Malloy and Gazlowe became Danny Ocean. Ajani cast detect magic and the three of them went into the shop while Isabella wandered outside. Inside they saw the shop was very well maintained and professional. There was no sign of anything shady but looked like a very legitimate business. Counters were filled with about 10,000gp worth of jewelry and other items.Hayden
They were quickly approached by a well-dressed, but light footed Tiefling named Hayden. He asked if they were interested in pawning, selling, or buying. Gazlowe told him that they had some items for sale. Hayden took them to a counter to see what they had. The party observed several people come downstairs and seem to observe the customers. There were always more salespeople and “observers” than customers. They were all well watched. Ajani noted a very faint smell of coal smoke. After seeing the necklace and emerald, Hayden escorted the 3 Stone Bearers to the valuation room where they were introduced to Arthur HollandArthur
The valuation room was very comfortable. Arthur Holland sat behind a large desk with a few recent purchases on it. Arthur was counting some gold while another person stood in the back of the room eying it greedily. The Tiefling Hayden put the items on the desk and left the room. Arthur quickly grabbed some jeweler’s tools sitting on the desk and examined the pieces. After a few moments he offered 100gp for both pieces. Gazlowe knew the items were worth about 500gp combined and Cassidy was insulted by the offer. Arthur explained that they have a business to run, and the business takes all the risk here, “That is the offer, take it or leave it.” Gazlowe took the items back. Gazlowe sized up Arthur and surmised he had no real magical experience and proceeded to insult him saying, “Clearly you deal with the mundane, is there someone more experienced we can talk to about a magical item?” Gazlowe pulled out the Kinesthetic Projection (the tentacled short sword) and said, perhaps someone who can evaluate this? Arthur, still insulted but recognizing it was magical, said, “Perhaps the manager can assist, please wait by the door.” Another person was brought in by Hayden and Arthur requested that Hayden see if the manager is available.Ticking off the staff
The 3 stone bearers waited patiently as the new customer, an elderly human, handed Arthur a gold chain. Gazlowe quickly evaluated a value of 500gp. Arthur offered the human 50gp for it. The human begged and pleaded but Arthur said, “Take it or leave it.” Gazlowe offered the human 200gp for it. Cassidy looked at Gazlowe with wide eyes. Ajani saw the assassin in the back of the room reach for a blade inside his cloak and then Arthur waved his hand at him slightly indicating, “not now.” The assassin relaxed his hand but glared at the 3 stone bearers. Arthur told the party to exit the room please. The human took the necklace back and watched the party leave. Back on the sales floor, the party observed all the “salespeople” offering to sell items for far more (up to 10 times) the items actual value. Clearly the operation was making outrageous profits. The party recollected that about 30 years ago, a merchant cartel had a massive monopoly over trade and raised prices to the point that it started a famine. As a result, the Alliance implemented strict regulations about markups that merchants may apply to goods. The cap was typically 3X for standard jewelry and precious metals. Charging 10x was illegal. They said nothing, just observed.The Manager’s Office.
The Tiefling Hayden found the party and brought them into the manager’s office. He opened the door, and behind a large desk was a distinguished looking older human wearing a wizard’s robe who was examining a map. The party didn’t get a good look at the specific location but knew the map was of Waterdeep. The mage quickly hid the map and glared at Hayden. Hayden apologized for not knocking and presented the party as sellers of a magical item. The mage introduced himself as the proprietor, Ryan Philip. Ajani asked for and received a business card. The party (experienced at sizing up opponents) recognized that this Archmage is very powerful and very charismatic. Ryan smiled, offered the party some fancy wine and a seat. Gazlowe placed the Kinesthetic Projection on the table and Ryan’s eyes lit up. Seeing the tentacles squirm, he asked if the item is cursed. In Abyssal, Cassidy said, “Yes.” In Abyssal, Ryan responded, “Thank you for your honesty.” Ryan examined the item, cast identify and asked how they came upon it. The Stone Bearers lied telling Ryan they relieved it from some adventurers in the Shadowfell. Ryan asked what the party was expecting for it and Gazlowe wanted to perhaps trade it for a more useful item.An offer you can't refuse
Ryan did some quick calculations in his head and evaluated the party. He believed they stole the item from someone in the Shadowfell, which means that technically the item is not “Stolen” (according to the laws of the Sword Coast.) He also realized that the Shadowfell is only for experienced adventurers and to kill another adventuring party in the Shadowfell means they are very good indeed. He also concluded that the party would be experienced enough to know the items value and perhaps they could be useful. Rather than insulting the party he offered them 1,000gp. (About ½ the items value to a collector.) Ryan also told the party that while he doesn’t often keep a large inventory of magical items for sale or trade, he does know where some can be acquired if they are interested in that sort of thing (wink, wink.) The party agreed. He rang a bell, and Hayden returned. Ryan told Hayden, “We’re bringing on more hands.” He instructed Hayden to take these 3 to the break room and introduce them. Ryan asked if there was anyone else, he should know about on their crew. They brought in Isabella and introduced her as Julia. They also mentioned other “associates.” Ajani did notice that the smell of coal smoke was a tad stronger in the Manager’s office. The others didn’t smell anything.The Break Room
Abrash went back to the B&B to make observations. The other 4 went to the break room and saw 3 people playing cards. Cassidy recognized one of the faces from a wanted poster for a man (Howard Ruiz) wanted for murder (100gp bounty.) Hayden gave Cassidy a key for the facility that gets them in the front door. Hayden told the men playing cards that the new folks could use an assignment. A man named Dom Doodly stood up and told the party of a prisoner in the basement that needs to be interrogated. The party were given small lapel pins to identify themselves and their rank as newbie. An assassin named Joe escorted the party to the basement.The Basement Common Room
In the basement was a common room where the atmosphere was much more jovial. Good-looking food (Hot Wings) adorned the table. There were four people in the room looking relaxed. Even the torchlight felt warmer and more relaxing. This of course, was countered by the large, bloodstained weapons leaning against the walls and table. They quickly learned this is where the mercenaries hang out between assignments unless they are tasked with working the floor upstairs. Joe told those sitting at the table, “New recruits going into the Mine.”The forge.
Outside the break room the party saw a forge room and tracks that lead to an old mine. The party was experienced enough to immediately see the tell-tale signs that the Mine was not actually being used, yet the forges were smelting gold. Gazlowe saw a large pile of bullion worth about 7,000gp and another smaller pile, partially hidden by cloths and such. Gazlowe couldn’t see how much was in the 2nd pile, but it was considerably smaller than the first.The old mine.
Joe took the party into an area of the old mine. All the sounds of the other rooms were cut off and they couldn’t hear the jovial talking of the mercenaries or the loud swoosh of the forge bellows. The area was musty with a smell of mold, clearly not used in any real sense for years. In the darkness they heard a muffled whimper. Joe stayed in the corner of the room and told that the prisoner is in the other corner and needs to be interrogated. Ajani cast detect thoughts to read the prisoner’s mind as he asked him questions. He learned that the prisoner was a guard who learned that the backhands were doing various nefarious things including price gouging, blackmail, having locals pay “protection money” and organized thievery (where they melt down the stolen gold items.) On the surface he was just begging for mercy and promising never to tell anyone of anything he saw. Ajani saw in his mind that the prisoner screwed up and told another guard what he saw, and the thought of Blackmail crossed his mind. The other guard had turned him in.The prisoner speaks no more.
The guard’s name was Clem and he begged to be set free. He whispered to Ajani that they could take the other guard in the room, and no one would hear them. Ajani relayed what he heard to the rest of the Stone Bearers and to Joe. Joe asked them what they would do with such a person and to do what is necessary. Gazlowe suggested Sovereign gluing his mouth shut. Cassidy suggested removing his tongue and fingers. Isabella disagreed with long term suffering. Gazlowe asked for more light so Joe could see his plan and Cassidy obliged. Gazlowe took out his Homunculus beetle Scuttly and put it into the prisoner’s mouth. The beetle crawled inside and killed Clem from the inside out. After a few moments, it crawled out from Clem’s corpse through his stomach. Even Joe was a little taken back by the scene, but it was obvious he thought it cool.Trusted.
Joe brought the party back into the basement common room and told the others the new recruits did well. Joe left them in the room for now telling them he’d report what they did and how they did it to the boss and they should wait here until they have another assignment. The party hung out with the others for a little while and learned a bit more of the nefarious tasks the mercenaries get every now and then. The mercenaries in the room let it slip that sometimes they don’t always give to the boss everything they steal.Searching the Break room.
Cassidy and Isabella went upstairs to the breakroom where a few folks were playing cards. The others were not there. Cassidy and Isabella searched the room and didn’t find much of any use other than cards and other common items. Cassidy did find a contract for mercenary Joe that indicated that indicated that he was an expert safe cracker. Cassidy also swapped some cards between 2 of the decks, stacking one with 2 extra aces and a queen.A clue
While Cassidy and Isabella were searching the breakroom, Ajani and Gazlowe were eating the hot wings and talking with the mercenaries about various things. Ajani however couldn’t handle his food and he got sick on the floor. The guards snickered and told him to get some rags from the forge room next door. Ajani went to the forge and saw a bucket of water and the rags covering the second pile of gold. He took a couple rags and told the forge workers he’s cleaning up a mess. He got a good view of the gold under the rags and estimated it was about 300gp worth. He also happened to grab a piece of paper that was buried in the pile. See ->Snooping.
They party got together again in the basement common room. They went back into the mines and discussed what they’ve learned and realized there are more areas they need to explore somehow. They made their way back to the forge room and Gazlowe encouraged them to simply “Walk with confidence.” They party went right past the forge works to a door they had not gone into.Fencing room.
They walked into a large room that was abuzz with activity. Between the two individuals sitting at the desks in the room and the three standing around while having their goods evaluated, it was one of the more packed rooms in the building. A scattering of gems and jewels were laid on the tables while several cupboards and chests lined the walls. Most conspicuously in the room, however, was the massive vault door, sealed shut with heavy deadbolts set into steel and stone. The party was neither welcomed nor told to leave right away. They were asked for their credentials and showed their pins. One of the assassins evaluating the goods looked at them skeptically. The party stared at the massive vault door for a moment and then left the room.The vault.
Back in the mines they discussed what they saw. Using Extract thoughts, Ajani tried to recreate the Vault door. They saw the lock on the safe was an alpha numeric lock so picking it would not be easy. They had also seen runes on the lock. Ajani, Cassidy and Gazlowe discussed the runes. They recognized the symbols as perhaps a combination of Transmutation and Conjuration. Gazlowe recalled similar runes on the vault that they encountered in the Clockwork Queen’s establishment where they first were transported to the ethereal plane. The runes were not identical but could indicate that the vault was a gateway to a different plane so simply breaking it open may not work. Although a professional safe cracker may be able to figure out the correct combination.
Thomas Elliot
Abrash Asim
Chaotic Good Moon Wood Elf (Folk Hero)
Druid 1
Druid 1
9 / 9 HP
STR
7
7
DEX
10
10
CON
13
13
INT
8
8
WIS
19
19
CHA
14
14
Report Date
03 Apr 2024
